Part 17 (2/2)
The French prisoners who died in 1870-71 at the ca have been buried, on the same spot Marceau was not older than these soldiers, who died without falory, when his brief and wonderful career ca it, the Ger these remains around it; for it is proper that beside the chief should be represented the anonymous multitude without whom there would be no chiefs
In 1889 the remains of Marceau were transferred to the Pantheon in Paris, and the Coblenz monument now commemorates only his name It will be the same with Guynemer, whose reulf theht back, amidst the acclamations of the people, to the endary life was fitly crowned by the mystery of such a death
One of the frescoes of Puvis de Chavannes in the Pantheon, the last to the left, represents an old wo at the town beneath her with itsbluish in the night The city is asleep, but the holy woht as a lily
Her la stem illuminated by the flame She, too, is like this la without her ardent face Her serenity can only come from ell done and confidence in the future Lutetia, represented in this picture by Genevieve, is not anxious; yet she listens as if sheapproach of Attila It is because she knows that the barbarians ain, and can only be stopped by invincible faith
As long as France keeps her belief, she is secure The life and death of a Guynemer are an act of faith in immortal France
ENVOI
The _ballades_ of olden times used to conclude with an _envoi_ addressed to so, Queen, Prince or Princess But the poet was occasionally at a loss, for, as Theodore de Banville observes in his _Petit traite de Poesie Francaise_, ”everybody has not a prince handy to whoraphy is of such a nature that it must seem like a poem: why not, then, conclude it with an _envoi_? I have no difficulty in finding a Prince, for I shall select hi the French schoolboys There is a little Paul Bailly, not quite twelve years old, froe in Franche-Comte, rote a beautiful theh hiirls, in all the French towns and villages
Little Prince, I have no doubt that you love arithures which will satisfy your taste You will like to know that Guynemer flew for 665 hours and 55 seconds in all, which I added up froht is not recorded in thehts in which he was engaged, that is difficult to ascertain Guynemer himself did not seem anxious to be sure about it
But it ht well be 700 or 800 Your Guynemer, our Guyneot to hand over to his successors, rivals, and avengers the sacred flaenius is an exceptional privilege, and because the present le coe whole units
You will also love to hear about Guyneic airplane Some day this airplane will be exhibited; and perhaps some of your little friends have already seen at the Invalides the ht down nineteen German airplanes On November 1, 1917, thousands of Parisians visited it; and it was streith nificent bunches of chrysanthemums, to which many people added clusters of violets
In Guynemer the technician and the marksman equaled and perhaps surpassed the pilot Captain Galliot, who is a specialist, has called hi that his excellence as a gunner arose from meditation and preparation The same officer adds that ”accuracy was Guynemer's characteristic; he never shot at rando and careful aimas with him His ence, un, and accounts for his overwhel superiority”[31]
[Footnote 31: _Guerre aerienne_, October 18, 1917]
But when you have realized the technical superiority of our Guyne, the essential thing You have heard that Guynemer's frame was not robust; that he was delicate, and the military boards refused him several times as unfit
Yet no aviator ever showedcruising necessary in altitudes of 6000 or 7000 unners as accurate as Guynemer, but there has never been anybody who equaled hiedness in keeping up a fight We ift--his own genius--must be ultimately reduced to his decision, that is, his will-power His will, to the very end, was far above his physical strength There are two great dates in his short life: November 21, 1914, when he joined the army, and Septeht Neither a passion for aviation nor thirst for glory had any part in his action on those two dates Will-power in itself is soh it be, and ulated his will by one great object, which was to serve, to serve his country, even unto death
Finally, do not place Guynerave, even in the region where there is no grave, he would resent it I hope you will learn by heart the naoing to give you, whatever may becoesser 30 airplanes brought down Captain Heurtaux 21 ” ”
Lieutenant Deullin 17 ” ”
Lieutenant Pinsard 16 ” ”
_sous-lieutenant_ Madon 16 ” ”
_sous-lieutenant_ Chaput 12 ” ”
Adjutant Jailler 12 ” ”
_sous-lieutenant_ Ortoli 11 ” ”
_sous-lieutenant_ Tarascon 11 ” ”